Which info object should be used for Financial statement line (BPS and BCS)

Question

Hi experts.
A rather easy and straightfoward questions for someone out there.
In BPS as we know, we use the info object '0SEM_POSIT' (account groups, or financial statement line) to summamrize and store amounts from groups of accounts or for example data from COPA's value fields, and which is already an attribute of the info object '0ACCOUNT'.
I am told that there is another BCS related info object called '0CS_ITEM' that serves the same purpose, and uses it for the same reason for the purpose of consolidations.
We'd obviously like to use just the one of these info objects because of planning and reporting.
Can someone out there with knowledge in BCS recommend which one to use, and from their experience in the past how they combined the use of both (if you in fact did use both).
Also, is it true that in BCS you cannot use a two characteristic BW hierarchy for consolidations, and it can only consolidate a one characteristic BW hierarchy?
Thanks dearly

Answer 1

Hi Eugene,
I kind of understood what you said, but just incase, let me explain my situation a little clearer. In BPS I'm using 0SEM_POSIT for two reasons:
1) To create hierarchy based on 0SEM_POSIT info object, and making each node postable. This is because on this project we don't plan at account level. Only at a kind of account group/financial statement line level. So each node is postable so that they roll up to the higher levels.
2) I will have 0SEM_POSIT as an attribute of 0ACCOUNT (which is standard delivered as an attribute in BW). This will ensure that I derive the actuals at that the same level as the planned. This is required for two reasons:
                           a) I can have the actuals as comaprison column in the Planning
                               layout.
                           b) I can report on the Actuals vs. Plan at the postable node
                               level in BW queries.
So having explained this, what I understood from your explanation is:
a) I can continue to 0SEM_POSIT as my info object for my postable node hierarchy, and
b) I can also use 0CS_ITEM as a consolidation unit specifically for BCS only.
So what I really didn't understand is:
1) your explanation of the mapping of 0SEM_POSIT to 0CS_ITEM, and what this mapping actually does. For example does 0CS_ITEM derive the values from 0SEM_POSIT because of this mapping? Can you explain this a bit? Is Datastream a tool in BCS by which BCS readinf financial data from other components?
2) Can BCS use a 2 characteristic postable nodes hierarchy as a consolidation unit? For example, if I create ONE hierarchy using 0SEM_POSIT, and 0ACCOUNT. Both will be postable at any level of the hirarchy.
Can BCS consolidate using this 2 characteristic hierarchy structure? OR, must it use 0CS_ITEM info object?
3) How does both 0SEM-POSIT, and 0CS_ITEM co-exist together, in terms of planning, consolidation, and reporting. For example if I report using the 0CS_ITEM hierarchy, then I will not be able to read plan data, because plan data is posted on the 0SEM_POSIT? and vice versa......? This question kind of ties in with 1).
Sorry for the long message, but I wanted to make sure I explained it better.
Thanks for your help